Jointer fence



y 24, 1934- H. E. TAuTz 1,967,791

' JOINTER FENCE Filed Sept. 25, 1931 I V ggA/JKJR W/ TNESSES A TOBNE Y Patented July 24, 1934 JOINTER FENCE Herbert E. Tautz, Milwaukee, Wis., assignor to Delta Manufacturing Company, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application September 25, 1931, Serial No. 565,088

11. Claims. -(Cl. 144-253) The invention relates to fences for jointers and other machines.

An object of the invention is to provide a workguiding fence for the table of a machine tool, such as a jointer or other wood-working machine; mounted to swing about an axis substantially in alignment with the upper surface of the table and capable of being tilted in either direction about such axis from a perpendicular position with respect to the table, there being stop means for determining the perpendicular position of the fence with respect to the table without requiring measurement by the user, and the stop means including a stop member readily shiftable out of its stop-forming position to permit the fence to be swung about its axis to an acute angle with respect to the table.

The invention further consists in the several features hereinafter set forth and more particularly defined by the annexed claims. I

For the purpose of illustration, the invention is herein shown to be embodied in a fence of a Jointer, although it will be clear that the invention is not limited to such particular use.

In the accompanying drawing, Fig. 1 is an end view of a jointer embodying the fence of the present invention, the perpendicular position of the fence with respectto the jointer table being shown in full lines and an angular position of the fence being indicated in dotted lines;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the stop shifted out of stop-forming position, and the fence tilted beyond its vertical position, and

Fig. 3 is a detail top view of the stop means for the tiltable fence, a swingable stop member thereof being shown in full lines in its inactive position and in dotted lines in its stop-forming position.

In this drawing, the numeral 10 designates a jointer table on the outer end of which is carried a'bracket 11. The bracket, which may be of die cast construction, is slidably mounted on ways, not shown, extending below the end of the table in parallel relation to the axis of the cutter head, as in my United States Patent .No. 1,790,288, issued January 2'7, 1931, and is releasably secured in adjusted position along the ways by a clamping screw 12. The bracket is provided with an outer face 13 which is substantially parallel to the axis of the cutter head and at right angles to the upper face of the table 10.

A plate 14 slidably bears on the outer face 13 of the bracket 11 and is arcuately-grooved at its inner face to slidably receive therein an arcuate segmental rib 15 formed on the bracket, thereby defining an axis of rotation for the plate. axis lies substantially in the plane of'the upper surface of the jointer table and at right angles to the face 13 of the bracket.

A clamping screw 16 is threaded into the bracket 11 and extends through an arcuate slot 1'7 formed in the rotatably mounted plate 14 to clamp the plate to the bracket in angularly adjusted position. A fence 18 extends over the surface of the table 10 and is rigidly secured to the plate 14 by screws 19. The fence is provided with a fiat work-engaging face 20, and the lower edge of the fence may engage the upper surface of the table, as in the above patent.

A lug 21 is formed integrally on the bracket 11 and has a stop screw 22 threaded therein and retained in adjusted position by a jam nut 23 or other suitable locking means. *A stop member 24, preferably in the form of a flat link, is carried on the plate 14 and is engageable with the lower end of the screw 22 to limit the swinging movement of the plate to a position in which the workguiding surface 20 of the fence is located at a definite predetermined angle with respect to the upper surface of the table, in the present specific illustration perpendicular to the upper surface of the table. In order to extend the range of angular adjustment of the fence, the stop member 24 is shiftably secured to the plate to swing out of register with the stop screw. The inner end of the stop member 24 is confined closely in a slot 25 between parallel faces of spaced lugs 26 on the plate and is pivotally mounted on a pin 27 passing through these lugs to permit swinging of the stop member into and out of register with the screw and in a plane passing substantially through the axis of rotation of the plate 14. The flat screw-engaging face of the stop member remains parallel to the fence axis in all positions of the stop member, thus avoiding the necessity for exact positioning of the stop member when it is swung to stopping position. By swinging the-stop member out of register with the screw 22, as seen in Figs. 2 and 3, the fence may be tilted to a position such as seen in Fig. 2. When the stop member is swung into register with the screw, as seen in Fig. 1, the fence may be swung through approximately 45 from the dotted line position to the full line position at which latter position the stop member strikes the screw 22, thus determining the position of the fence at right angles to the table without requiring the measurement of such angle to be made by the user. While, of course, the perpendicular position of the fence with respect to the table is the one most frequent- This 1y desired in the ordinary use of the jointer, it will be obvious that the selected angle need not necessarily be a right angle, but may be any other desired angle within the range of pivotal movement of the fence. For instance, it is readily conceivable that in certain fields of work it may be desirable frequently to set the fence at an angle different from a right angle to the table, where the chief operations performed require such deviations from the perpendicular position. It will, therefore, be understood that the invention is applicable to provide means for rapidly setting the fence at any desired much-used angle to the top or working surface of the machine table. It will also be obvious that the invention, in practice, is not necessarily restricted to the presence of only a single stop member, such as 24, or 22, but one or both of said parts may be duplicated at different positions, if preferred, to provide more than one predetermined angle to which the fence may be set rapidly and automatically.

An angular scale 28 is molded or engraved in the bracket 11 and cooperates with an index pointer 29 secured to the plate. As in the above patent, the index pointer is of angular shape and has one end portion rotatably fitting within a bore formed in an edge portion of the plate. The pointer can thereby be swung into proper registration with the scale 28, and is held in position by a set screw 30. The scale is preferably of the zero center type and in the present instance extends 45 on each side of the center. When the pointer is at zero, the fence is in a perpendicular position with respect to the table.

The fence is capable of tilting on each side of its perpendicular position with respect to the table, thus permitting cuts to be made on the work at various angles. The commonly used perpendicular adjustment of the fence may be readily obtained without reference to the angular scale by swinging the stop member 24 into operative position with respect to the stop screw, thereby facilitating the work of the user. The stop screw and stop member are preferably mounted on the bracket and fence, respectively, but in some instances this relation may be reversed.

While I have shown and described an embodiment of the invention wherein a fence cooperates with the table of a jointer, it will be evident that the invention is not restricted to such specific use, but is of much broader application.

In other words, the fence may be applied to cooperate with the tables of many different machine tools, either for woodworking or for other types of machining, for example, saw tables, sandpapering machines and, in fact, any machine wherein an operation is to be performed upon a work-piece which must be guided and presented to the active abrading or cutting element of the machine at a definite angular position.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a machine tool having a table, a fence extending over said table and tiltably mounted thereon about an axis substantially in alignment with the upper surface of the table, and stop means limiting the angular movement of said fence in one direction from an obtuse angle to a perpendicular position with respect to said table, said stop means including a swingably mounted part movable out of stop-forming position to permit tilting of said fence to an acute angle with respect to the table.

2. In a machine tool having a table, a fence extending over said table and tiltably mounted thereon about an axis substantially in alignment with the upper surface of the table, a stop screw carried on said table, and a stop member swingably mounted on said fence for engagement with said stop screw and limiting the angular movement of said fence in one direction from an obtuse angle to a perpendicular position with respect to the table, said stop member being swingable out of register with said stop to permit its passage therebeyond and thereby permit tilting of said fence to an acute angle with respect to the table.

3. In a, machine tool having a table member, a fence member extending over said table member and tiltably mounted thereon about an axis substantially in alignment with the upper surface of the table member, and stop means limiting the angular movement of said fence member in one direction from an obtuse angle to a perpendicular position with respect to said table member, said stop means including an abutment on one of said members and a part shiftably secured to the other member to be moved out of register with said abutment and thereby permit tilting of said fence member to an acute angle with respect to said table.

4. In a machine tool having a table member, a fence member extending over said table member and pivotally mounted thereon substantially in alignment with the upper surface of the table member, there being a stop abutment on one of said members and there being a slot-like recess on the other member, and a stop member having a portion closely fitting in said recess and pivotally mounted therein to be swung into and out of register with saidstop abutment, said stop member when in register with said stop abutment limiting the angular movement of said fence member in one direction from an obtuse angle to a perpendicular position with respect to said table member, and said stop member when swung out of register with said stop abutment permitting tilting of said fence member'to an acute angle with respect to said table member.

5. In a machine tool having a table, a fence extending over said table and tiltably mounted thereon about an axis substantially in alignment with the upper surface of said table, said fence -having a regular range of angular adjustment and an extended range of angular adjustment, and stop means for limiting the swinging movement of said fence at the end of its regular range of adjustment and including a shiftable part and a cooperating abutment having a path of relative movement in the plane of said abutment, said shiftable part being movable laterally out of said path for permitting said fence to be'swung throughout its extended range of angular adjustment.

6. In a machine tool having a table, a fence extending over said table and tiltably mounted thereon, said fence having a regular range of angular adjustment and an extended range of angular adjustment, and stop means for limiting the swinging movement of said fence in its regular range of adjustment and including a shiftable part and a cooperating abutment having a path of relative movement in the plane of said abutment, said shiftable part being movable laterally out of said path for permitting said fence to be swung throughout its extended range of angular adjustment.

7. In a, machine tool having a table, a fence extending over said table and tiltably mounted thereon, said fence having a regular range of angular adjustment and an extended range of angular adjustment and having a pre-determined angular position with respect to the table when at an end point of said regular range of angular adjustment, and stop means for limiting the swinging movement of said fence in its regular range of adjustment to said pre-determined angular position and including a shiftable part and a cooperating abutment having a path of relative movement in the plane of said abutment, said. shiftable part being movable laterally out of said path for permitting said fence to be swung beyond said pre-determined angular position and throughout said extended range of adjustment.

8. In a machine tool having a table member, a fence member extending o' 'er said table member and tiltably mounted thereon about an axis substantially in alignment with the upper surface of the table member, and stop means limiting the angular movement of said fence member in one direction to a pre-determined intermediate position with respect to said table member, a said stop means including an abutment on one of said members and a part shiftably secured to the other member to be moved out of register with said abutment and thereby permit tilting of said fence member to the other side of said intermediate position.

9. In a machine tool having a table member, a fence member tiltably mounted to be swung to different angular positions with respect to the table member, there being an abutment on one of said members and a slot-like recess in the other member, said recess having opposite walls, and a stop member having a portion closely fitting in'said recess and pivotally mounted there- 'in, the opposite walls of said slot-like recess confining said pivotally mounted stop member against axial movement, said abutment and stop I member having a path of relative movement and said stop member being swingable laterally into and out of said path at. will, said stop member when in stopping position limiting the angular movement of said fence member to a pre-detenmined angular position with respect to said table member and said stop member when swung out of stopping position permitting tilting of said fence member past said pre-determined position.

10. In a machine tool, the combination with a fence pivotally mounted-to be swung in either direction from a pre-determined intermediate position, and a stop arranged to stop said fence in said intermediate position when desired, said stop being hinged so that it may be swung out of stopping position, and having a stopping face the plane'of which is parallel to and adjacent the fence axis and is perpendicular to the hinge axis.

11. In a machine tool, the combination with a table member and a fence member pivotally mounted thereon to be swung in either direction from a pre-determined intermediate position,- 

